Texas Tech's top five running back commits of the Rivals.com era

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Texas Tech received a commitment from Pasadena (Texas) Sam Rayburn 2018 Rivals100 running back Stanley Hackett last week, an addition that ranked both as a surprise and a big-time get for the Red Raiders this early in that recruiting cycle.

How does Hackett stack up among Texas Tech running back commits in the Rivals.com era? Let's take a look at the top five highest-ranked tailback pledges.

Griffin committed to the Red Raiders in the summer of 2009, pulling the trigger before ever taking a visit out to the South Plains. He would later visit for the Oklahoma game in late November, but there was no way he could've known that just over a month later Mike Leach would be fired and the program's coaching staff would get turned on its head.

Griffin stuck with his commitment through the coaching change, however, and became a member of Tommy Tuberville's first class on campus, signing with Texas Tech over Arizona, Kansas, Kansas State, Missouri and Tulsa.

The four-star prospect never set foot on campus as a Red Raider, though. Griffin failed to qualify out of high school and never played a down of football for Texas Tech.

Seth Litrell was one of the best recruiters that Leach ever had on staff at Texas Tech, and one of his biggest hauls was undoubtedly Jeffers, who signed with the Red Raiders over offers from Oklahoma State, Kansas State and SMU.

The four-star prospect redshirted in 2008 but, of all the freshmen in the class, no one received more hype from teammates and coaches than Jeffers for his near-legendary performances in practice and scrimmages that year. That talk created some pretty wild expectations for the running back, and many believed he was on track to be the best tailback of the Air Raid era.

Jeffers' career never panned out, though, as nagging back injuries seemed to derail any hope of him developing into the program's next great offensive weapon. He rushed for a career total of 320 yards and four touchdowns before giving up football in 2011.

Williams' recruitment was a wild one. Things ultimately came down to Texas Tech and Texas A&M, with some members of the media based in College Station believing he would sign with the Aggies despite being committed to the Red Raiders for months. Williams obviously stayed the course with Texas Tech, and he was thrown into action from the get go as a true freshman.

While he saw action sparingly for the majority of the 2011 season, season-ending injuries to DeAndre Washington and Eric Stephens would force him into the starting lineup by the end the season.

Williams was a steady power runner, leading the Red Raiders in rushing as a sophomore and junior. As a senior, things took an unexpected twist: He moved from running back to outside linebacker. The attempted switch didn't stick, and he moved back to offense as a role player before the end of the season.

Overall, Williams was a good, solid player for the Red Raiders that made his mark with a number of memorable plays throughout his career. He finished with 1,543 rushing yards and 16 rushing touchdowns on 322 attempts, plus 631 receiving yards and four receiving touchdowns on 60 catches.

Stephens flipped his commitment from Minnesota to Texas Tech in November 2008, a big recruiting coup for the Red Raiders, as the tailback is still (for now) the highest-ranked runner to sign with the program in the Rivals.com era.

The Mansfield native made an impact from day one, becoming the teams primary kickoff returner and backup tailback as a true freshman.

In 2011, his first season as the team's full-time starter, Stephens got off to a fast start and looked to be in store for a special season. Unfortunately, he suffered a catastrophic knee injury against Texas A&M in the fifth game of the year. Stephens missed the rest of the season rehabbing after surgery.

The running back never fully realized his potential as a result, but he was still very solid as the Red Raiders' backup in 2012. Even now, Texas Tech fans will always wonder what might've been had the knee injury never occurred.

He finished his career with 1,967 rushing yards and 21 rushing touchdowns, averaging 5.3 yards per carry, adding 537 receiving yards and four receiving touchdowns through the air.

As a Rivals100 four-star prospect, Texas Tech's newest commit also happens to be their highest-ranked running back pledge of the Rivals.com era. The Red Raiders appear to have gotten a good one in Hackett, a 6-foot-3 tailback who will be the change of pace back that running backs coach DeShaun Foster wants to add to the team's backfield.

Hackett has the size and power to get physical and tough between the tackles, but he can make plays in space when he finds a crease.

Seeing as he's a class of 2018 prospect, Hackett's recruiting process is far from over. However, the Red Raiders are obviously off to a great start with the Pasadena native.